Papermaking belt and method of making the same using a textured casting surface

Claim 1

A process for making a strong, soil, absorbent paper web comprising the steps of: (a) providing an aqueous dispersion of papermaking fibers; (b) forming an embryonic web of papermaking fibers from said dispersion on a foraminous surface; (c) contacting said embryonic web with the paper-contacting side of a papermaking belt having a paper-contacting side and a textured backside opposite said paper-contacting side, said papermaking belt comprising: a framework having a first surface defining said paper-contacting side of said belt, a second surface opposite said first surface defining said textured backside of said belt, and conduits extending between said first surface and said second surface said first having a paper side network formed therein defining said conduits, and said second surface boxing a backside network with passageways, distinct from said conduits, that provide surface texture irregularities in said backside network; a reinforcing structure positioned between said first surface and said second surface, said reinforcing structure having a paper-facing side, a machine-facing side opposite said paper-facing side, interstices, a reinforcing component, a projected open area defined by the projection of the areas defined by said interstices and a projected reinforcing area defined by the projection of said reinforcing component; and wherein nil of said passageways, are positioned outward from the plane defined by the machine-facing side of the reinforcing structure, and said backside surface has sufficient fluid passage capacity to permit at least about 1,800 standard cubic centimeters/minute of air to escape across said textured surface; (d) traveling said papermaking belt and embryonic web over a vacuum source and applying a fluid pressure differential to said embryonic web with said vacuum source such that the fluid pressure differential is applied from the backside of said papermaking belt through the conduits" of said papermaking belt to deflect at least a portion of the papermaking fibers in said embryonic web into the conduits of said papermaking belt, and to remove water from said embryonic web through said conduits, and rearrange said papermaking fibers in said embryonic web to form an intermediate web from said papermaking fibers under such conditions that said deflecting is initiated no later than the initiation of the water removal from the embryonic web; (e) impressing said paper side network into said intermediate web by interposing said intermediate web between said papermaking belt and an impression surface to form an imprinted web of papermaking fibers; and (f) drying said imprinted web.